Deformable insole



Sept. 14, 1937. c. H. DANIELs 2,092,909

' DEFORMABLF. INsoLE Filed oct. 8, r1955 Patented Sept. 14, 1.937

uNrri-:n s'-1A"i.l.f.sl PATENT OFFICE l v nnromzivsom I 13Claims.

the foot supports which are built into the shoes as manufactured are formed 'to fit the feet of the wearer.

It is well understood that the feet of differentl persons have individual characteristics,- and it is almost impossible to obtain a correct fit whenthe shoes are manufactured from standard designs bf lasts. Even though the size of the shoe may be correct for the foot to which it is fitted, the insole does not t the sole of-the foot and form the proper support for the arch. Replaceable supports for the feet, such as heel cushions and metatarsal supports, etc., are not manufactured in a suilcient number of shapes and sizes so that a supportl may be selected to iit'the individual foot. Furthermore, it is a diicult proposition to properly position such arch supports in the shoes. According to my invention, foot supports are manufactured which, when completed, will permanently retain the shape of the4 particular foot `and shoe with which such support is to be associated, or if built into the shoes to form a part of the shoe, will permanently retain the shape of the 'l foot which is to wear the shoe.

In my invention foot supports are formed which .are'initially plastic and moldable at normal temperature so that such a foot support can be placed in a shoe and the foot inserted into the shoe so that pressure applied to the foot causes the foot support to take the shape of the foot and, accord.- ing to my invention, the shape of the foot support producedby the pressure of the foot may be permanently retained by causing the plastic material o f the foot support to be transformed to 'a non-plastic forml retaining state.

Thus, according to my invention, the foot supports may be individually manufactured or initially built into the shoes, and comprise a material which is initially plastic and moldable at envelope or covering. The plastic material may be of a composition which will harden upon contact with the air, or which may be hardened by the application of. heat, or which may. be hardened 50 by rst wetting the material and subsequently drying it. Plastics of the iirst type may comprise normal temperature retained'within a exible (cl. ssm -when and if desired, either by admitting air. into the support or by applying heat, or by drying a previously moistened foot support, the material will be transformed to a non-plastic or rigid inflexible mass which will retain the shape to which 5 it has been molded and may thereafter be used as a proper and'correct arch support for the individual foot. l

In the drawing:- l

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a foot support, a 10 portionof which is broken away to show the interior thereof;

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of a shoe having a foot support incorporated therein;

Fig. 3 isV a crossI section of the foot support 15 shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 1 illustrates one form of a foot support which canbe manufactured for insertion into a finished shoe. 'Ihe envelope 0r flexible walled chamber I0 may be made from fabric, thin leather 20 or other material. 'Ihe top and bottom layers Il and I2 ofthe material may be stitched as at I3 to leave a filling opening at one end. It is preferablel to make the material of the envelope airtight and this may be done by applying an adhe- 25fN sive sealing compound I4 ofcement, liquid latex or a similar` substance. Iii desired, the sealing compound may be readily sprayed on the exterior of the stitched envelope and then the envelope may be turned inside out to bring the 30 sealed surface to the inner side.

'I'he envelope is filled with material I6 which is plastic and moldable at normal temperature. 'I'he envelope after being illled is sealed at the filling opening by cement or latex I8. .35

It is particularly desired that the material used for the lling in the foot support be moldable at normal temperature so that the support may be placed in a shoe and the shoe applied to a foot.

It would be objectionable to have the foot rest upon a heated body. The pressure .of the foot causes the foot support to take the shape ofthe foot and in such operation there is a tendency to raise the arch of the foot and to cause the bones oi.' the foot to return to their normal positions. 45 After the foot support has been molded to ilt the individual foot and shoe with which it has been associatedit may be transformed from a plastic body to anon-plastic body so as to permanently v retain the desired shape. 50

Foot supports -ci? this'form may beibuilt into the shoes as lthey are manufactured and mayextend the lengthtof the shoe. as' illustrated in Fig. 2,. In this gure the-shoe 20 has a layer 'of flexible material 22 .which is lstitched or ,othcr-I 55 wise secured to an underneath layer 24 to form a chamber which receives the filler I6. The bottom layer 24 need not be as flexible as the upper layer l22, and the insole of the shoe may form thelay- For the filling material it is preferable to use a composition that hardens upon contact with air such as a material known as plastic'wood and described in Griffiths Patent No. 1,838,618 issued December 29, 1931, although I desire to use cork flour instead of wood flour in the composition to obtain a light weight composition. The essential ingredients of the composition are a solution of nitro cellulose, such as Celluloid, in a volatile liquid such as benzol, and a iiller of finely divided cork which will form a putty-like plastic mass which hardens upon exposure to the air. Nondrying oils `and resinous materials may also be included in the composition, as fully described inthe Griiliths patent.

When an air hardening composition is used it may be found desirable to exhaust the residual air so far as possible from the envelope after it has been filled so that the material will remain plastic and moldable for a long period of time. This may be done by the use of a hypodermic needle which may be inserted through the material I8 used for the seal at the filling opening. The air may be pumped out by the hypodermic needle. By using a iine hollow needle only a small opening is made through the sealing compound which will close as the needle is withdrawn.

When it is desired to cause hardening of the plastic cork composition, the envelope'is punctured or perforated or an opening is made in some manner to admit air. The rate of hardening is dependent upon the degree to which the air is permitted to enter the envelope to evaporate the solvent, and is therefore controllable by the user. The period of hardening may be prolonged by making only small holes in the envelope which retains the plastic body.

It is within the scope of my invention to use other materials as the filler which are cold moldable and transformable to a non-plastic state. For example, cold molding resins may be used which are transformed by heat to a solid infusible body. A material like plaster of Paris could be used which is moldable when wet and is hardened by drying. It is also within the scope of my ingvention to use rubber in a moldable putty-like state such as latex which is still moldable due to the presence of water` or crude rubber which has been rendered soft by a solvent. 'I'he rubber will harden as the water or solvent is removed upon contact withv the air. The drying or hardening may be more rapidly accomplishedv by blowing heated air into the shoe.

It will be understood that the plastic material will remain in a plastic moldable state so long as it is retained in the air-tight envelope and the foot support.may be used in the moldable form. It is preferable, however, after the foot impression has been obtained, to cause a transformation of the mass to ,a non-plastic form retaining state. When the rubber composition is used the foot support will be yieldable but will elastically return to the shape in which it has been molded.l In the other forms; of the composition the foot support will be inflexible and oonstitute a rigid body.`

lclaim:

' 1. A unitary article for receiving an impression from a foot and for permanently retaining such impression, comprising a receiver having flexible walls, said walls being sealed against the passage of air, a mass of plastic material insaid receiver which is adapted to harden upon access to air, said walls being perforable to admit air for such hardening when desired.

2. A foot support comprising a plastic moldable mass which is transformable in the presence of air to a non-plastic form retaining shape and an air-tight sealed envelope of flexible material enclosing said mass for retaining said mass in its plastic state.

3. The method of forming a foot support which consists in forming an air-tight envelope of flexible material, filling said envelopewith a plastic, moldable mass which is transformable in the presence of air to a non-plastic form"retaining shape, sealing said envelope after it has been lled to retain said mass in a plastic moldable state, and placing said envelope in a shoe whereby pressure applied by the foot thereto will mold the envelope to the shape of the foot.

4. The method of taking the impression of a foot which consists in filling a iiexible walled chamber with a plastic mass capable of hardening upon access to the air, sealing said chamber, perforating a wall of said chamber immediately prior to taking a foot impression, and allowing the material to harden after the foot impression has been taken.

5. The method of forming a foot support adapted to be used in a shoe, which consists in forming an envelope of flexible material, filling said envelope withv a plastic mass which hardens upon access to the air, placing said envelope in a shoe, inserting the foot into the shoe and applying pressure to the foot, whereby the plastic mass is caused to take the shape of the foot, and making an opening into the envelope to admit air when it is desired to cause hardening of the plastic mass to retain a foot impression.

6. The method of forming a footl support adapted to receive and retain the impression of a foot, which consists in forming a flexible walled envelope, filling said envelope with a plastic mass capable of hardening upon access to air, abstracting the residual air from said envelope after it has been filled, sealing said envelope after the air has been removed and perforating the envelope when it is desired that the plastic mass shall harden to retain a foot impression..

'7. The method of forming a foot support which consists in forming a flexible walled envelope having a filling opening, sealing the exterior of vsaid envelope with an adhesive solution, reversing said envelope to bring the sealed surface to the inner side, iilling said envelope with a plastic mass capable of hardening upon access'to the air, removing the residual air from said envelope so that said material will remain plastic for a long period of time, and subsequently perforatlng a wall of said envelope when it is desired to cause hardening of said material.

8. The method of making a foot support adapted to receive and retain a foot impression which consists in forming a plastic mass capable of hardening upon contact with another element, sealing said mass within an envelope, making a foot impression thereon and making an opening into said envelope when it is desired to admit the element which will cause hardening of the mass to retain the foot impression.

9. The method or forming a foot support which consists in formingan envelope of flexible material, sealing the walls of said envelope, ll-

hardening in contact with the air, and abstracting the residual air from the envelope to retain the plastic state of the filler for a l'ong period of A time.

10. A foot support adapted to receive and retain a foot impression comprising a filler sealed within and retained in a plastic state by a ilexible impervious envelope through which an opening may be readily made to admit an element,

which will cause hardening of the filler.

11. A foot support adapted to receive and retain a foot impression comprising a ller hermetically sealed within and retained in a plastic state by a. ilexible impervious envelope through 15 which an opening may be readily made to admit air which will cause hardening of the ller.

12. A foot support comprising a fabric envelope, a illing compound which is moldable at normal temperature under the pressure of a foot retained within the envelope and a sealing coat- 5 ing on the `envelope which prevents hardening of the filling compound for some time.

13. A foot support comprising a fabric envelope, a lling compound which is moldable at normal temperature retained within the envelope 10 and a sealing coating of rubber applied to the envelope which prevents hardening of the filling compound for a long period of time.

CLAUDE H.r DANIELS. 1 i 

